Cables, such as telecommunication cables and electrical power distribution cables, are ubiquitous and used for distributing electrical power and all manner of data across vast networks. The majority of cables are electrically conductive cables (typically copper), although the use of optical fiber cables is growing rapidly in telecommunication systems as larger and larger amounts of data are transmitted. As cables are routed across power or data networks, it is necessary to periodically open or splice the cable so that power or data may be distributed to other cables or “branches” of the network. The cable branches may be further distributed until the network reaches individual homes, businesses, offices, and so on.
At each point where the cable is opened, it is necessary to provide some type of enclosure to protect the exposed interior of the cable. Commonly, the enclosure has one or more ports through which cables enter and/or exit the enclosure. For ease of description, the ports are generally referred to herein “entry ports”. However, it is understood and intended that the term “entry port” includes any and all ports through which cables or other members enter and/or exit the enclosure. Depending upon the number of entry ports in the enclosure, the sizes of the entry ports, the number of cables entering the enclosure, and the sizes of the cables, the number of cables passing through the each entry port will vary. Often, especially with smaller diameter cables as are typically used in distributed lines, multiple cables are bundled for placement into a single larger entry port. This is particularly common where multiple smaller cables are routed from a single point to multiple locations, such as individual homes, buildings, offices, etc.
At each entry port, no matter the number of cables passing therethrough, it is often desirable or necessary to provide a seal around the cables to prevent the ingress of moisture, dust, insects, and the like into the enclosure. Current methods of providing a seal around the cables typically involve bundling cables with mastic materials, rubber-like tapes, self-vulcanizing tapes, gels, potting compounds, and the like. Such sealing methods are replete with disadvantages. The quality of the resulting seal is highly dependent upon the skill of the installer, and the reliability of the seal is therefore typically inconsistent from one installer to another. Further, as the number of cables increases, it becomes more and more difficult to form a reliable seal. Many of the technologies used to form a seal also present difficulties when it is desired to re-enter the enclosure, such as when adding or removing cables in the entry port. Specifically, the old sealing materials must be removed without damaging the cables, and a new seal must be constructed. The removal and reconstruction of the seal requires the use of additional time and materials, and therefore adds to the cost of maintaining or expanding the network.
To address the disadvantages of seals formed with mastic, rubber-like tape, and the like as described above, pre-formed grommets have been used to expand the capacity of entry ports in an enclosure. Typically, the grommets are sized to fit within an enclosure entry port, and have a predetermined number of holes for accepting smaller diameter cables. The cables are threaded through the holes in the grommet, and the grommet is in turn secured within the entry port. Existing grommet sealing devices also have disadvantages. In particular, entry ports of many enclosures are lined with a soft or pliable gasketing material, such as neoprene or rubber, for creating a compressive seal with cables extending through the entry port. Forming a reliable seal with the gasketing material of the entry port and also with cables extending through the grommet is difficult. If the grommet is pliable enough to satisfactorily seal around the feed-through cables, then it is typically too soft to create a satisfactory seal with the entry port gasket. On the other hand, if the grommet is hard enough to seal satisfactorily against the entry port gasket, then it is too stiff to seal adequately around the feed-through cables.
A need exists for a sealing member that enables an installer to produce a reliable seal with gasketed enclosure entry ports, independent of the skill level of the installer. Furthermore, a need exists for a seal that can be easily and quickly installed, and that can be easily re-entered and re-used multiple times without seal degradation.